The present invention relates generally to remote monitoring of home devices and, more specifically, to a system and method for interrogating, from a remote location, a device in order to retrieve diagnostic information.
Currently, when a customer of a service company such as an electric company reports a service outage, the service company must dispatch a representative to determine whether the outage is caused by equipment that is the responsibility of the service company (e.g. a blown transformer) or the customer (e.g. a blown electrical fuse). Each time a representative is dispatched, expenditures of time and money are incurred by the service company, even though the reported problem may not be the responsibility of the service company. In the event of outages at multiple locations, a representative may be sent to one location at the expense of another, thus creating a misallocation of limited company resources. In addition, it is often difficult to determine whether or not a specific repair has been successful.
Provided is an apparatus and method for detecting the state of a device and transmitting to a remote location a particular tone or tones corresponding to the detected state. The state detection and transmission is initiated either by a predetermined series of tones from the remote location to the apparatus or by a change in the state of the device. The claimed apparatus may be coupled to a device such as, but not limited to, an appliance or meter or, in the alternative, an integral part of the device.
In one embodiment, the claimed apparatus is coupled to both an electric meter and a telephone line. If an electric customer reports a power outage, the electrical service provider responsible for the meter can determine whether there is power to the meter without sending a service person to the customer""s location. In response to a predetermined series of tones transmitted from the electrical service provider to the apparatus via the telephone line, the apparatus determines whether a specific voltage level is present at the electrical meter. If the specific voltage level is present at the meter, then a particular tone is transmitted from the apparatus to the service provider, indicating to the service provider that a reported power outage is not the result of the service provider""s equipment and that the customer may need to be advised to call an electrician. If the specific voltage level in not present at the meter, a second, different tone is transmitted and the service provider can dispatch a service person, knowing that the reported problem originates on the service provider""s side of the electrical meter. In this manner, unnecessary service calls are reduced or eliminated and the service provider can allocate resources more efficiently. In addition, transmissions from multiple locations enable the service provider to determine the scope of a problem.
In addition to electrical service providers, the claimed subject matter is applicable to any service provider or user with a need to monitor somthing such as, but not limited to, major appliances, cable boxes, gas lines and even such things as a chemical level in a swimming pool. For example, if a consumer complains to a television manufacturer about a broken television, the manufacturer can send signal to the television via cellular telephone receiver in the television and determine whether the television is receiving power and a suitable cable signal. A signal from the television to the manufacturer can utilize the same cellular telephone connection.